Olivar Market in Palma, Mallorca

The big shop for Christmas is under way. | MDB

Andrew EdePalma15/12/2023 09:01
TW
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The Consumer Price Index (CPI) for November indicates that the cost of basic products has risen by 9.4% compared with last year. This increase is not as great as it was between 2021 and 2022, but the cumulative rise over two years is 23.1%.

The product which has risen in price the most since 2021 is oil - up 64%. The National Statistics Institute, which compiles the CPI, includes sunflower oil as well as olive oil in this price. Treated on its own, the price rise for olive oil is much higher. It has gone from being around four euros a litre to ten euros. Some supermarkets now put anti-theft collars on bottles.

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The price of olive oil is expected to keep on rising. Most of what is consumed in Mallorca comes from the mainland, where the harvest has been poor for the second consecutive year.

Two other basic products which have risen in price significantly are sugar, 42%, and milk, 32%. Alcoholic drinks have gone up by 17.6% since 2021, while mineral water, soft drinks and juices have risen 23.3%.

As to popular food items for the Christmas period, there is some good news. Prawns at the Olivar Market in Palma are 36 euros per kilo, whereas they were 48 a year ago. Suckling pig has meanwhile increased in price from 130 to 160 euros per unit and shoulder of lamb has gone up from 17.95 to 22 euros per kilo.